Preventing recurrent opacification of the visual pathway after pediatric cataract surgery

PURPOSE: To determine the rate of secondary opacification of the visual pathway following pediatric cataract surgery in children between the ages of 10 months and 7 years. METHODS: The medical records of children less than 7 years old who underwent lens aspiration, posterior chamber intraocular lens (IOL) implantation, primary pars plana posterior capsulectomy, and anterior vitrectomy were reviewed retrospectively. Twenty-six eyes in 19 children were included in the study. All procedures were performed by an anterior segment surgeon and a vitreoretinal surgeon. Main outcome measures were the prevalence of re-opacification of the visual pathway and of early postoperative complications. RESULTS: The visual pathway remained clear in 25 of 26 eyes (96%) after pediatric cataract surgery combined with primary pars plana posterior capsulectomy and anterior vitrectomy. The mean age at surgery was 46 +/- 23 months (+/-SD). Secondary opacification of the visual pathway occurred in one eye (4%), requiring another surgical procedure. At last follow-up (mean, 26 months; range, 6 to 79 months), the visual pathway was clear in all 26 eyes (100%). No cases of clinically significant IOL displacement or of retinal detachment were noted. CONCLUSIONS: For children undergoing pediatric cataract surgery between the ages of 10 months and 7 years, IOL implantation combined with primary pars plana posterior capsulectomy and anterior vitrectomy is effective in preventing re-opacification of the visual pathway.